Christchurch, 3 December 2012 – PGG Wrightson has chosen to extend its contract with Gen-i, a Telecom New Zealand business, for the provision of a wide range of telecommunications and IT services by a further two years.

The new two-year contract includes voice, broadband, mobile, data and managed network services, in addition to Gen-i’s Safecom and SecureMe security services.

According to PGG Wrightson CIO Roger Rennie, the company decided to renew its contract with Gen-i based on its past performance in three critical areas during the course of the previous five-year contract.

“We assess our suppliers based on service delivery, price and innovation to help take us into the future. Gen-i has delivered on all three fronts,” says Rennie.

“We’ve enjoyed a consistently good level of service from Gen-i over our previous five-year contract for the provision of telecommunications services and therefore decided to extend it for a further two years.”

Before renewing its contract, PGG Wrightson conducted an independent benchmarking review comparing the pricing of Gen-i’s services with market rates.

“We discovered that after five years, Gen-i’s pricing was in-line with the market because over the term of the contract they had been coming to us with good offers,” says Rennie.

Gen-i’s support in keeping PPG Wrightson up-to-date with new technology over the previous five years was another major factor in the decision to extend the relationship, adds Rennie.

“Throughout the term, Gen-i presented us with new offerings which have kept us updated with the latest technology and ensured we were getting the best value from our investment.”

Projects completed during this period included implementing Gen-i’s managed GMS Network service to manage the performance of PGG Wrightson’s wide-area network (WAN) and local area network (LAN) infrastructure.

Robust and highly available network infrastructure is essential in providing PGG Wrightson with the connectivity it needs between its 120 sites across New Zealand, as well as in Australia and South America.

With management and support offices located in various centres in both the North and South Islands, PGG Wrightson relies on high-quality data connectivity to enable teams at different locations to communicate and collaborate effectively, says Rennie.

“Having support functions split between different locations around New Zealand allows us to better support the agriculture sector across the country. With good connectivity between our offices we can use video conferencing extensively, which has greatly reduced the time we spend travelling.”

Meanwhile, providing accurate and timely information to frontline staff in its 100 stores across the country, as well as its 600 agents working remotely in the field, is vital to PGG Wrightson delivering a market-leading level of service to its customers, says Rennie.

“We have a great team of people in our stores and in the field providing expert advice to our customers each day. Making sure they have the most up-to-date information is crucial to our ability to provide great customer service, which is a key differentiator for us in the market.”

This is also a main driver behind PGG Wrightson’s emerging mobility strategy that aims to take advantage of improved rural broadband and mobile coverage delivered through the Government’s Rural Broadband Initiative.

“The crux of our mobility vision is to ensure our people working remotely have access to the tools and information they need to best serve our customers. Therefore, we are looking forward to the increased coverage and data connectivity RBI will provide in rural areas, as well as to new technology like 4G,” says Rennie.

A mobility vision centred on Windows 8

As part of its mobile strategy, the company plans to standardise on Microsoft Windows 8 tablets and smartphones.

“We see Windows 8 as the ideal platform to support mobility in our business because it offers enterprise-grade security and manageability not found on other devices. In addition, having a consistent interface across desktop, tablet and mobile devices will deliver a better user experience for our people,” says Rennie.

Earlier this year, PGG Wrightson deployed over 180 Nokia Lumia 710 Windows Phone 7 smartphones and plans to upgrade to Windows 8 devices during the course of its regular replacement cycle over the next 18 months.

Windows Phone 7 has been a good introduction to the new Windows 8 operating system for users, says Rennie.

“The look and feel and many features such as Live Tiles are consistent between Windows Phone 7 and Windows 8, so Windows 8 will be a familiar experience for our people.”

Gen-i is proud to continue supporting an organisation that is playing a vital role in enabling the success of New Zealand’s agriculture sector, says Acting CEO Gen-i Australasia, Jo Allison.

“PGG Wrightson is a leading provider of products, services and solutions that are crucial to the success of growers, farmers and processors in New Zealand and internationally. We are delighted to be supporting PGG Wrightson as they take New Zealand agriculture to the world.”

With its large presence across rural New Zealand, PGG Wrightson stands to benefit greatly as connectivity in rural regions improves as a result of the Rural Broadband Initiative, Allison adds.

“Faster fixed and mobile broadband will enable organisations such as PGG Wrightson to take full advantage of the latest video, collaboration and mobility tools in more of the areas where they operate,” says Allison.

“This will help businesses to better equip and connect with their rural workforce, while enabling them to boost productivity, increase efficiencies, reduce costs and be more flexible.”

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About PGG Wrightson
PGG Wrightson draws on the knowledge and expertise of more than 2,000 employees around the globe to meet the needs of more than 50,000 clients across New Zealand and globally serviced through its growing footprint in Australia and South America. For more information on PGG Wrightson, visit www.pggwrightson.co.nz[1]

About Gen-i
Gen-i is at the forefront of helping customers take advantage of the convergence of technology and telecommunications, and the new opportunities this makes possible. Gen-i works alongside its 2,700 corporate, government and business customers to deliver seamless hosted and integrated ICT solutions. A member of the Telecom New Zealand Group, Gen-i achieves this with the support of 2,500 highly skilled people in 19 locations across New Zealand and Australia. For more information on Gen-i, visit www.gen-i.co.nz[2]